


Power in Numbers

by danieru



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: College AU, Getting Together, Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Panic Attacks, chemistry major!kuroo, emotionally confused kuroo, forensic science major!akaashi, more bokuaka-ness in later chapters, protective kuroo, psychology major!kenma, sports medicine major!bokuto
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-28
Updated: 2016-11-09
Packaged: 2018-07-18 21:28:10
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 3
Words: 5,547
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7331254
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/danieru/pseuds/danieru
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Kuroo stared at the disgusting note addressed to his best friend for a long time before speaking, memorizing every stroke of handwriting that littered the page. He looked at Kenma with a mixture of utter horror and wild anger. </p><p>Kenma turned his head into the pillow underneath him, and Kuroo finally spoke, voice no louder than a whisper.</p><p>“Kenma, why didn’t you tell me?”</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> check out my tumblr at riaa-writes.tumblr.com

Kuroo put his head on his desk and let out a low groan. The clock read 2 a.m. however the Organic Chemistry paper (that was currently the cause of a _major_ headache,) was due for submission the next morning at 9:00.

He hadn’t procrastinated _that_ badly. The paper was even done by midnight, leaving only the revision process. But _oh boy was that Kuroo’s weakness…_

A crack of lightning sent a jolt through Kuroo’s spine, causing him to slam his knee into the bottom of his desk. Any chance of him dozing off for a few minutes was destroyed as he tried to steady his breath and refocus on his computer screen.

His attempt to refocus was futile and abruptly halted as a frantic knock on the door of his apartment caused him to skyrocket completely out of his seat. He cursed under his breath as he heard a familiar voice. Panic only set in, however, when he heard the voice raise into a frightened and shrill jumble of words. Kuroo threw open the door immediately and felt his heart stop in his chest as he looked down at Kenma.

The boy was absolutely _soaked_ and looked as if he had seen a ghost. He was shaking from head to toe ( _hopefully just from the cold)_ and he held his fists at his side in balls of white tension. His eyes were wide and bloodshot, capturing Kuroo’s own in a mind-numbingly intense trance.

Knowing the other wouldn’t speak, Kuroo began shoving the wet clothes from the boy. If he had been _anyone else_ Kenma would have shot off, not allowing a single inch of his skin be exposed from another. He would even protest this action from Kuroo, which made Kuroo’s thoughts go absolutely south. He felt his heart catch in his chest and he looked at the shirtless boy in front of him. A hint of fear was still in his eyes, but they were mostly wide and unexpressive. _And Kenma wasn’t breathing…_

 _“Kenma!”_ Kuroo took the boy by the shoulders and knelt down in front of him. “Kenma _breath!”_

Slowly, as if being woken up from a deep sleep, Kenma dropped his head to the source of the noise. He even flinched when Kuroo’s face came into view, and a mixture of subtle, _Kenma-like_ emotions finally appeared on the boy’s face.

“T-Tetsuro…?” He seemed genuinely _confused,_ and Kuroo forced his face to be calm. The last thing Kenma needed was a panic attack. He squeezed his shoulders and nodded, watching as the tension slowly started draining from the body in front of him. They both heard the sound of crumpled paper hit the wood flooring, and Kenma reflexively flinched. It had dropped from his fist, however Kenma looked at it in confusion. Kuroo began to reach for the wad, stopping when Kenma let out a noise Kuroo had _never_ heard him make.

Kenma’s new expression resembled his previous, fear-struck one.  This time, however, he didn’t seem to be in a trance. He collapsed on Kuroo and began to shake again. Kuroo put the almost-forgotten coat on his friends back, not caring about the absolutely drenched pants seeping into his shirt, and reached for the note. He mindlessly unraveled in with one hand as the other arm wrapped around Kenma, about to take him to his room to figure out _what was going on_.

He stopped dead in his tracks as his eyes slid across the barely-legible writing on the paper. He felt his blood boil and his breathing become harsh.

This was a fucking _death threat._

\---

Kuroo stared at the _disgusting_ note addressed to his best friend for a long time before speaking, memorizing every stroke of handwriting that littered the page. He looked at Kenma with a mixture of utter horror and wild anger.

Kenma turned his head into the pillow underneath him, and Kuroo finally spoke, voice no louder than a whisper.

“Kenma, why didn’t you _tell_ me?”

Kenma bore his face deeper into the pillow on Kuroo’s bed. He didn’t make any noise to answer, just tightened his grip on his hair and began trembling. Kuroo immediately moved from his desk and onto his bed, feeling a little guilty about questioning Kenma at such a wrong time. He knew how utterly _overwhelming_ this all was and attempted to keep his anger away from his friend. It would only further upset him. They could dig up the dirt later.

 He sighed and looked at his friend sprawled on the bed. His heart dropped as he watched the small shoulders start to tremble and his eyes began to water when he heard the first sharp breath in from the other. He mindlessly dragged a hand along Kenma’s back, reverting back to how he’d handle this situation in earlier years.

Though it wasn’t common, this wasn’t the first time Kenma had broken down to Kuroo. He had plenty of experience with Kenma breakdowns, but nothing was as bad as tonight. They were best friends since kids, and Kuroo was the only person who could read the signs, who could tell the differences between his stances, posture, and every detail of his expression. Most of the time, he could read him like a book. _Some feelings were harder than others of course…_

Kuroo had known his feelings for his best friend were different from conventional best friends. The connection was deeper, more present. Which is why he was absolutely dumbfounded at the note. It didn’t look new (it was even dated from one month ago,) and Kuroo had no idea who it was from. All that he knew was that someone dangerous knew Kenma and wanted to do _bad things_ to him.

He looked at his friend, now dressed in Kuroo’s old volleyball shorts and one of Kuroo’s t-shirts with the coat wrapped around him like a blanket.

He knew it wasn’t the time, but _damn_ he didn’t realize how much that affected him. His heart ached as he looked at the small ex-setter in his bed. His ex-setter.

“Kenma, this has to go to the polic-“

“No.”

Kuroo didn’t know what to say. He didn’t want an argument with Kenma, especially when his brain was in full panic mode. He let out a sigh and resorted to make a compromise.

“Alright, no cops. If you won’t let me go to actual authorities, at least let me _try to help._ I know a forensic science major, and we’re going to find that _demon_ who wrote that trash you walked in with.”

Kenma only nodded, and Kuroo took it as a tiny victory. He suddenly remembered his abandoned paper and moved to turn off his forgotten laptop. A small hand shot out from underneath the coat and grabbed Kuroo’s. His face flushed against his will as he saw the pair of golden eyes turned towards him.

“Please stay…” It was so faint Kuroo almost didn’t hear it. He understood, though, and settled back on the small bed.

“Alright.” He smiled at him. “I’m not going anywhere. I _am_ going to text Bo. His boyfriend is the forensic science major. Do you remember Akaashi?”

He saw Kenma’s ears turn from pale to red as the boy nodded. Kuroo couldn’t find it in himself to feel jealous, he the man was absolutely gorgeous…

 _And Bokuto’s._ He inwardly sighed as he settled his hands on the boy’s back. The other had finally steadied his breath to a normal pace. He glanced at the clock again

_3:30 a.m._

Kuroo groaned and brought a hand to his eyes, pretending that he didn’t have to be awake in four hours.

He was surprised when Kenma spoke.

“Thank you Kuroo.”

“Of course.”

He shot a text to Bokuto after seeing the slow rise and fall of the other boy. He knew Bokuto was asleep, but would never be mad at him for sending a text, even at this hour.

_I need you and your boyfriend’s help. Some fucker has it out for Kenma and we are going to make goddamn sure he doesn’t lay a finger on him._

Not expecting a reply back, he let his back slump against the wall, closing his eyes and trying hard not to think about the small body wearing his clothes next to him to hard…

He jumped a little when his phone let out a small beep. It was Bokuto.

_When the fuck do we start._

Kuroo felt himself fill with fondness and _other sensations_ as he replied right away.

_Tomorrow. Bright and early._


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for sticking around! More bokuaka-ness added as promised!

Kuroo woke up with warmth pressed against his side and a small arm draped across his stomach.

He rubbed his eyes and looked at his friend, unconsciously hugged into Kuroo’s side. He replayed last night’s events over in his head, wondering vaguely if they even happened. The crumpled paper lying next to him on the floor assured him that it indeed did, causing Kuroo to fill with irritation. Then another thought occurred…

_Shit. That Orgo paper…_

The clock read 8:13, and with the events that happened last night, Kuroo knew that whatever was on that word document on his laptop was going in the submission box. He thanked whatever gods were listening that it was an _online_ submission. He moved to get up when the arm across his front tightened. Kuroo’s mind froze as his heart rate accelerated.

Kenma was curled up against him, burying his face in Kuroo’s side. The steady rise and fall of his chest was something Kuroo could watch for hours. In those moments, Kuroo always knew Kenma was finally at peace, finally able to escape the constant anxiety and pressure of everyday life. The two were so different in that way, Kuroo having always skated through life without a second thought, without doubt about his own success and future. It had always been like this, even when the two were very young. The contrast was so stark, it surprised Kuroo greatly that the small blonde with major trust issues allowed him to comfort him in times of need.

This time, however, had been the most Kenma had _ever_ needed him.

But right now, Kuroo needed to get that paper turned in if he ever hoped to maintain his practically perfect grade point average.

“Kenma, I need you to let me grab my laptop.”

The body next to him shifted and let out the smallest of noises. Kuroo felt a wave of heat crawl up his back and spread across his entire face. This wasn’t the first time he has woken up Kenma, but _damn_ this platonic façade wasn’t getting any easier…

“It’s important, and I’ll be right back.”

Finally, unconscious Kenma relented and released his grip on the other, rolling over to the other side. Kuroo chuckled and slung a leg off the bed, stretching as he stood. _Damn_ he needed to ditch that twin size bed.

He mindlessly grabbed his phone and checked it. One new message from Bokuto popped onto the screen, sent at seven that morning.

_We’re coming to ur place after class bro._

Kuroo scratched his head and chuckled. It was so like Bokuto to _not_ provide a time of when exactly that would be. Kuroo grabbed his laptop from the desk and opened it up. After skimming through the document and fixing a few minor spelling mistakes, Kuroo at least thought it was B-worthy. A few minutes later, the paper was successfully uploaded and turned in. Kuroo always got a brief satisfaction after seeing the green checkmark signify the completed assignments. He mindlessly smiled his lopsided smile, picking himself up once again to return to the bedroom.

Kuroo leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms. He often felt as if his feelings for his friends (let’s face it, Kuroo like Kenma, Bokuto, _and_ Akaashi,) were weird and unrequited. He felt hopeless in the sense that any move he could make would ruin a relationship with at least one of them. He could never imagine a life without Kenma, his best friend since grade school. Being around Bokuto made it _impossible_ to have a bad day, and Akaashi made Bokuto happier than anything in the world. Kuroo expected this to cause him feelings of jealousy and grief, but instead it created an even deeper connection with Akaashi. His quiet demeanor reminded him of Kenma, however he was so different from the others and so damn _pretty._

Kuroo knew he was screwed up. There was _no_ way this would ever end up the way he wanted it to.

He only realized that he was lost in thought when Kenma began to stir and blink open his golden eyes. Kuroo felt a twinge of guilt about worrying over his romantic woes when his friend had gone through the horrors of yesterday. He still wasn’t even sure _what_ happened. The note was dated for a month ago _(who dates death threats??)_ meaning Kenma had probably had the damn thing for longer than just a night.

Kenma shifted forward in Kuroo’s bed. He blinked a few times and looked around, as if confused of where he was. Kuroo could physically see the realization set in and Kenma slumped further over and turned his face to look at Kuroo.

“Morning.” Kuroo sat on the edge of the desk across from his bed, “In the mood to talk?”

Kenma huffed and threw himself back onto the bed, finally acting a little bit like himself again. Kuroo chuckled, used to this attitude from him.

“Alright, alright. We’ll save the talking for when Bokuto and Akaashi get here. Should be soon, I guess we missed our opportunity to grab some stuff from your place.”

“I don’t want to go there.”

Kuroo blink at him, but nodded. It might have been a bit early to leave security. He felt his face warm as Kenma yawned and rubbed his eyes. He was just so damn _cute._ In an attempt to hide his blushing face, he hoisted himself off of the desk and paced over to Kenma. “Alright, no problem. I’m going to make coffee. Want any?”

“Milk and sugar please.”

Kuroo left the room and headed to the kitchen. His apartment wasn’t anything to look at, he had to pay for it himself, and while he had a few good scholarships he had to use money saved from summer to pay rent. He was currently in between jobs, meaning his current situation was anything but frilly.

 He had finished pouring the water into the old coffee maker when he heard the bed creak and a blanket-hooded Kenma sat itself down at his small (and cheap) table. He leaned on the counter and laughed at his friend. This was so endearingly _domestic,_ and for a second Kuroo’s mind was free from the worries of the yesterday’s situation. The two shared a comfortable silence, something they had been used to for a while now. After a few minutes, the coffee pot beeped.

Kuroo turned to grab two cups when a loud and sudden rap on the door made both men jump.

“Kuuuroooo! Why haven’t you just given me a key already? Open the door, it is _chilly out here._ ” The whine on the other side of the door obviously belonged to Bokuto.

Another voice made s shushing noise, and _that_ could only mean Akaashi was there with the other. Kenma gave Kenma an almost apologetic look as he walked towards the door.

“Kuroo.” Kenma stood now, rolling the blanket into a lump of soft down. Kuroo lifted an eyebrow and waited for him to finish his thought when the boy suddenly dropped his gaze, face flushing “Erm, I’ll tell you later…”

He sat back down, gaze unmoving.

Kuroo furrowed his eyebrows and wondered if he should say anything. Deciding against it this time, he turned to the door to let the pair in.

 

-

“But _Akaashi_ you’re an assistant in the _Forensic Science lab._ Can’t you just get your hands on some finger-printing stuff, or access files from every student’s record to compare handwriting?”

Akaashi pinched the bridge of his nose in slight irritation. “Bokuto, I am a _lab assistant,_ not an actual crime scene investigator. Even if we show the school the note, no one will ever let me into private student records. Besides, nobody uses their actual handwriting to write illegal threats such as this.” He gestured towards the wad of almost useless paper at the center of the table.

Finally, Kenma piped up, now looking intently at Akaashi, abandoning his DS in his lap and wrapping his hands around his mug of coffee. Akaashi looked taken aback (and if Kuroo didn’t know any better, flustered) at the question.

“Well, fingerprints _do_ last a long time, and if the rain didn’t obscure the oil that absorbed into the pores of the paper, we might be able to-“

“Perfect!” Bokuto pounded a fist into the air and shoved a hand across the table at Kenma, beckoning a high-five. Kenma startled at the sudden movement and made no advance to meet to high-five. Instead, Kuroo swooped his hand sideways, giving a confused but still excited Bokuto a loud high-five. Akaashi, watching the catastrophe on the sidelines, gave a noise of protest at being interrupted.

“ _Let me finish please._ ” Akaashi’s fingers returned to the bridge of his nose, “While a fingerprint _might_ give us some matches if we _hypothetically_ were able to access those kinds of files, I’d have to swipe a fingerprinting kit from the lab without anyone noticing. Which is _highly-”_

Akaashi’s gaze fell on the smaller boy in the group who now hung his head again, shoulders slumped and hands in his lap, still ignoring the video game. From what Akaashi knew, if Kenma stopped playing a game that was _in his lap,_ it was Not a Good Sign.

Akaashi let out a relenting breath, “Not impossible.”

Bokuto and Kuroo gave matching toothy grins, while Kenma looked up from his grimace, eyes once again intent and _surprisingly warm._ Akaashi had to swallow past the lump in his throat (and tried to steady his quickly accelerating heart rate,) before he was able to speak.

“However, I need some information. I’m afraid, Kenma, you’re going to have to explain to me everything that’s happened the past month leading up to last night.” The blond visibly shrank away from Akaashi and attempted to ignore the question when Kuroo’s hand grabbed Kenma’s. _Oh._ Akaashi felt heat spread through his face.

“Kenma…” Kuroo’s voice was a low rumble that sent a shiver up Akaashi’s spine. He somewhat desprately looked to Bokuto to try to steady his nerves. He saw an even more flustered (and red in the face) Bokuto sitting next to him _. What was going on?_

Kenma had been apparently unaffected, however the boy let out a huge sigh and put his head completely on the table in front of him. Akaashi wondered if this was all too soon and if they’d have luck another day when Kenma finally spoke.

“I found the note the day after the date on the paper. I was in Psych 101 when I saw it folded neatly in a zipper pouch in my bag. I thought it was a joke, just some stupid prank pulled by other college first years that still think they’re big shots like in high school. When nothing happened for weeks, I thought I had been correct. Then…” Kenma trailed off and audibly swallowed. Akaashi listened patiently, pretending not to watch the slow movement of Kuroo’s hand trailing up and down the smaller boys back. _Did Bokuto forget to mention something about these two to him?_

Bokuto broke the thick silence first.

“Then what, Kenma?”

Akaashi sent him a half-hearted warning look, resulting in a small whine from Bokuto. Kuroo chuckled at the two, and _wow he could make that sound again anytime…_

Kenma finally found his voice again. “ _Then_ yesterday happened. I - I was walking to my dorm from that off-campus bookstore.” _Wrong,_ Kuroo thought. _You were walking home from that therapist you see every week._ He didn’t make any attempt to clarify. “And I saw a figure following me. It was dark, so I wasn’t sure if I was just being paranoid. Then they… they called my name out, my _full_ name, in a really, _really_ awful tone…”

The group sat in silence now. For a few moments it remained like that. Akaashi half expected Bokuto to launch into questions they were all wondering (Did you see the figure at all? Was he holding anything? Did he run after you?) Akaashi certainly had some in mind, but he knew this wasn’t an easy thing to say.

Cautiously, he reached a delicate hand over to Kenma’s smaller one resting on the table, touching at the fingertips and waiting for any sign of discomfort.  When none came, he slid his hand further to envelope his entire hand.

“We’re going to get this guy Kenma. Thank you for telling us.”

He looked up now to meet the eyes of the other. They were very beautiful, and the golden color seemed brighter now than they had been before. His eyes darted to Kuroo, who was staring at the _two hands._ His jaw was completely slack, expression totally revealing of the feelings he had for Kenma. The curious thing was that Kuroo didn’t look jealous that he had his hand on the other boys.

… _Oh._

-

_Oh._

Kuroo gulped as the hands remained on top of each other. The two _prettiest people in the world_ were holding hands. One was his best friend, the other the boyfriend of his _other_ best friend. And Kuroo’s heart had officially stopped.

_Kuroo was seriously screwed._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hope you enjoyed it! check out my tumblr: riaa-writes.tumblr.com


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey guys, sorry about such a long hiatus! School hit hard this semester. This chapter was supposed to be a lot longer, but to show you guys I haven't given up on you I am posting what I had completed. Thank you so much for your patience!

Kuroo ran a hand through his wild bed head as he walked into the on-campus gym. Despite the constant crowd of people littering the entire room, he knew this was his only option for a good work out. He didn’t have money for any private gyms, so he’d have to deal with the annoyance of people who didn’t rack their weights, or people who used just about every machine in a giant loop, yelling at a person if they ‘stole their machine.’

It was the most obnoxious thing in the world.

Kuroo generally went into the gym with head phones and an almost angry expression, his size usually winning him some peace and quiet, until someone who thought they were macho challenged him. The amount of hostility in the school gym was ridiculous, and Kuroo rarely went alone. Bokuto generally went with him, and _no one_ challenged Bokuto. Something about his wild hair and physique kept the hostility at bay.

Bokuto had already started on the bench when Kuroo got there. He walked over to him, shouldering past other people, and yawned when he got behind the bench. He raised an eyebrow, looking still half-asleep. He crossed his arms over his chest.

“Need a spot?”

Bokuto grinned widely up at him. He was _way more_ of a morning person than Kuroo ever would be. Knowing him, he’d probably gotten there half an hour earlier to do a warm up jog and stretching. Kuroo preferred the roll out of bed and go method. _Especially_ this morning, and the past few mornings.

Kenma still stayed at his house. It had been three days since the conversation with the four of them. He hadn’t been back to his place but once. He gave Kuroo the keys to his dorm room, telling him to just pack a backpack full of clothes. He was getting better every day, regaining interest in video games and even pulling out a few assignments to work on.

What scared Kuroo was that he had missed three days of class. It was the middle of the semester, and without proper care he could really screw with his grade if he missed any more. That morning, the two had worked on sending e-mails to his professors, assuring he’d be in class that day.

He thought of that as Bokuto lifted the bar off the rack, lowering it to his chest in a steady rhythm. Kuroo refocused on his friend, ready to help out when he started to slow the pace. Over the few years they’d worked out together, he could perfectly gauge when Bokuto wanted him to assist and when he wanted him to let him struggle. Kuroo was the same way, feeling uncomfortable if anyone other than Bokuto spotted him.

When the rhythm slowed, he placed two fingers, barely pressing up. Just the motion and visual of the assist brought Bokuto back into his regular rhythm, grunting as he finished his set and pushed the bar back onto the rack.

The two took turns like that in mostly silence, adjusting the weight on the bar together. They each did four sets of flat bench and then moved to the dumbbell area. The benches were all taken but one, so two had to share.

Bokuto went first, adjusting the incline setting on the bench while Kuroo watched. His eyes trailed from Bokuto to other bodies in the room. Most of them big, most of them sizing each other up. He thought back to Kenma sitting at his house. He couldn’t help the paranoia that set in, the terrible thoughts that he allowed to pass through his brain.

Bokuto, who had finished his first set of incline dumbbell press, was the one who broke Kuroo from his worsening thoughts.

“You okay, Tetsu?”

Kuroo blinked at his nickname. Usually, only Kenma called him that, but he couldn’t help but like the way it sounded when Bokuto said it. He pulled the corner of his mouth into a half smile and nodded.

“Just tired I guess.” When he looked at Bokuto, he knew he understood, but didn’t know how to help.

“Well, we can skip and talk if you wa-“

“No. I’ve skipped too many days already. We finish this first.” He realized he’d snapped when he saw the droop in Bokuto’s shoulders. For such a muscular guy, Bokuto was extremely expressive. He sighed and forced his voice to soften. “Then we can talk. Sorry Bo, I really am just tired.” He paused, flickering his eyes to the side. “And worried.”

Bokuto nodded and clapped a hand on Kuroo’s shoulder. Kuroo could see other people staring and giving them weird looks, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. He leaned into the hand on his shoulder and smiled.

He moved away to grab weights, sinking onto the bench and leaning back. He fell into a similar rhythm as before, just with two separate weights. He could feel the strain on his chest, recognizing the effect the short break had on his muscles. When he was finished he dropped the weights onto his legs with a small grunt. He moved to get up to slam them back into their spot.

In their rest Bokuto looked at Kuroo and smiled wider. “Oh, I forgot to tell you! Akaashi took some extra hours in the lab.” He scratched his head as he moved around to prepare for his next set. “So don’t mind if I start coming over to your place more often. I’ll need _someone_ to feed me while Akaashi is away.”

Kuroo swallowed. His mind returned again to Kenma, but also to Akaashi and Bokuto’s relationship. He wondered just how much Akaashi would want Bokuto frequently at his house. He was _sure_ he saw the expression on his face the other night, the _many expressions._ Akaashi was probably the best out of the four at reading people, and Kuroo was pants at hiding his own feelings.

He nodded, unable to bring Bokuto down from his innocent request. “Door’s always open for you, Bo.”

Bokuto sat down in the bench and looked back, frowning slightly. “You still aren’t okay, are you?”

 Kuroo opened his mouth to reply, but only made a small protesting noise. Was he _really_ that easy to read? He huffed, “Just do your set.”

Bokuto shrugged and returned his focus back to the mirror in front of him, hoisting the weights up. Kuroo in turn replaced his gaze back to the mass of people littering the gym.

This time, someone caught his eye. It was a man even bigger than Bokuto, probably around the same age as them, hovering around a small girl in the squat rack, most likely a younger underclassman. He narrowed his eyes, focusing in on the scene. She had blonde hair, like Kenma’s, and a shorter but toned frame. The Big Guy leaned against the squat rack as she finished her set, her discomfort blatantly obvious.

Without realizing what he was doing, Kuroo moved towards the two, keeping a distance until the man moved his hand towards the girls arm. Kuroo couldn’t control himself at that point.

“Hey!” Kuroo shouted across the gym. “Don’t fucking touch her, asshole!”

All eyes were on him, even the people with head phones. The girl’s eyes were wide. She obviously was not expecting to be the center of attention this morning. The guy raised an eyebrow and scoffed. “I didn’t realize this gym hired bouncers who aren’t as big as the _men_ working out in this gym.” He cracked his knuckles and glared at Kuroo, “I was looking to maybe pick up a date, not get into a fist fight, but if you insist…”

Kuroo was rearing to go. His muscles tense, about to make the first swing, when a shorter, white and black haired blur held both back. Bokuto looked at Kuroo, eyes even wider than the girl’s, and shook his head.

“You two knock it off, this is a gym, not a bar!” He shoved them both back once. Kuroo didn’t stay, he booked it to the front door, fuming. He passed the worker who was probably on their way to escort him out of the gym. “Take care of that pig over there, would you?”

He pounded on the door, flinging it open. He was so mad he could hear his blood rushing to his head. He sat down on the steps, holding his head in his hands. He stayed like that for a while, just breathing. He was sick of not doing anything, sick of people getting walked on and just sitting back. He knew in the back of his mind that in that moment, that girl was Kenma. He felt that if he could protect her from the rude gym rat, he could protect Kenma too.

Just as he felt water welling into his eyes, he heard the door behind him open. Not bothering to see who it was, he knew once the body sat beside him. They stayed like that for a moment before Bokuto finally broke the silence.

“I know this is hard. You don’t have to tell me what’s going on, but I just want you to know I’ll be here if you need me to be.”

Kuroo swallowed. “You really have no idea how much I need to hear that.” He leaned on Bokuto’s shoulder. “I’ll tell you if you want.”

He took a shaky breath before continuing. “This whole thing is a mess. I feel useless, and I feel like Kenma is in constant danger and I can’t do anything to prevent that. He’s not helpless, I know that, but he could be over powered, like that girl in the gym.” He took a pause, unsure of how to continue.

“And… and there’s more Bo. I think that I love him.”

Bokuto nodded, “Yeah I know you do, you’ve been friends for a long time. That’s something-“

“No, Bo. I feel like, like I _love_ him. The way you love Akaashi. And the way…” He trailed off. “My point is, more than just friends. But he means so much to me, I don’t know how to let him know, and I don’t even know if I _want_ to let him know, because the thing is,” He grew more frantic with his words as he tried to find the right things to say.

“The thing is I don’t know if Kenma is the _only_ person I love, or _could_ love, like that. I just, I’m very confused Bo.”

Bokuto blinked, a smile on his lips. “Aw, Akaashi knew it!”

Kuroo furrowed his eyebrows and looked at him, pulling away from his shoulder “Akaashi… knew what?”

“Akaashi knew you liked Kenma _like that!”_ He beamed proudly.

_Of course he did._

“Bokuto, what about the other things I said.”

Bokuto shrugged. “I dunno. I mean, I love Akaashi, I always have since our days in high school. And I love you, we are perfect work out partners and you’ll do the things I like to do that Akaashi doesn’t.”

Kuroo sighed, not thinking Bokuto understood at all. He didn’t want to try and explain, so he just nodded.

“You know what. Let’s just go for a run.”

Bokuto piped up at that, jumping to his feet. “You’re on!”

So the pair started to run, Kuroo forgetting about the time or place, completely dissociating, when suddenly he felt a buzz in his pocket. After three times, he pulled his phone out of his pocket. _Shit._

“Bo! We need to turn back _now!_ ”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Again, this really wasn't a finished chapter. I promise around Thanksgiving (a few weeks,) I'll post what was meant to be the rest of this chapter. Thanks again for your patience, I really appreciate it!

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading! There will be more bokuakakuroken-ness in the following chapters, scouts honor! They will also be longer. Please comment and let me know how you like it so far!


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